7 Learnings from India’s Top Startups

‘Startup‘- it’s not a word anymore. It’s a phenomenon now. Government recent impetus and our Prime Minister’s much glorified Startup India campaign has to a certain degree, uprooted the stigmas of starting up. However, reflecting upon the startup success stories of the country, we realize, the stories are not of excellence or brilliance or revolutionary ideas but it’s a story of resilience, perseverance and breaking the shackles.

If you are good enough, you will give sleepless nights to the very best

Perhaps the startup story out of India. Back when start up culture was mainly in the West, the word itself was mere aspiration, Naveen Tiwari had his sights set on mobile advertising. Though not before, burning out other ideas did he arrive at this idea? Never the same, one needs to have the conviction to take on Google in its own backyard. Today, it is one of the very few billion dollar company out of India. After rejecting acquisitions from Facebook and other biggies, Inmobi is well on course to be the industry leader in the mobile advertising space.

Execution is the king

Ola and Flipkart epitomize how to beat one at their own game. These two companies are examples of an idea that has been copied a number of times but yet lacked that aspiration. Flipkart has been a thorn in the way of amazon, a giant in the e-commerce space. Amazon has not achieved the house hold appeal of Flipkart which is key to achieving success in India. Same is in the case of Ola. Ola is touted as the global competitor of Uber and the whole transport space is banking on Ola to break Uber’s global dominations. Ola and Flipkart are not ground breaking ideas, but they are examples of how great execution.

Timing is not in yours hands, perseverance is

This idea is revolutionary – booking doctor appointment through the internet. Looks difficult to happen. Think about 2008 when it took 10 minutes to download a 2 MB song. Yes the idea was staggering but so was the challenge of mass adoption. Turn the clock to 2016, after weathering storm and turbulence of time, it is most talked about healthcare start up in the country with funding from VC giants like Google, Sequoia and many more.

Think big – sometimes things that seems farfetchedpay rich dividend

Even Jack Ma believes in Paytm. The idea of a mobile wallet in a country where poverty is the biggest roadblock, in all fairness was little far-fetched to say the least. However the way Paytm went ahead in executing the plan was a feat in itself. Starting as small as bill payments, today Paytm is on the verge of opening up its own bank.

Solve a problem, make people’s lives easier

If you are making the lives of people easier, you are doing a great job. And hence in the hurly burly of city life, grocery shopping and daily essential stocking regularly is a drag. That’s the problem Grofers and Big basket are solving. Hyperlocal is a very daunting space but they have shown that with sound tech and effective operations, you can become a force to reckon with.

Copy Silicon Valley but with a desi touch

If Silicon Valley has Airbnb, we have OYO rooms. They have literally revolutionized the hotel experience. A 21 year college dropout understood the quality difference between experiences. Unlike Airbnb, instead of homes OYO used the unused inventory of hotels. And this was their desi masterstroke. They standardized the experience across the country. Result – OYO has gained that cult status among the young travelers and regular travelers alike.

Any time is a good time to start

This is not a story. Though it is a philosophical thought and an obvious one. But still does not make it irrelevant. If we make a list of founders, we will find people of all ages from all walks of life. Be it Ritesh Aggarwal or Vijay Shekhar Sharma, success have come at different junctures of their life. Their stories are more about the urge and conviction that should drove their decision. The fear to failure should only be a motivation.

We learn every day and we will keep learning from the Indian startup bandwagon every day. Will love to hear your learnings as well.

Disclaimer: This is a Guest post. The statements, opinions and data contained in these publications are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of iamwire and the editor(s).

Nipun Goyal is the Co-founder and Director of Curofy, where he leads the medical team, handles investor & media relations and oversees overall business strategy. He is a graduate from IIT Delhi, 2012 batch, with major in Electrical Engineering and minor in Business Management. He is passionate about making digital health communication easier and more organised and likes to interact with various healthcare stakeholders.